Tea Party mobilizing grassroots for upcoming Texas straw poll

Published 9:25 am, Monday, August 1, 2011

Texas Gallop Inc. Chairman Joe Pelati briefs a Tea Party gathering in Huffman on July 28 about the 527 corporation's inaugural Texas Gallop Straw Poll planned to be held in the Jan. 7-21 frame.

Texas Gallop Inc. Chairman Joe Pelati briefs a Tea Party gathering in Huffman on July 28 about the 527 corporation's inaugural Texas Gallop Straw Poll planned to be held in the Jan. 7-21 frame.

Photo: STEPHEN THOMAS

Tea Party mobilizing grassroots for upcoming Texas straw poll

1 / 1

Back to Gallery

Tea Party members in Texas are so fed up with other states having disproportionate influence in the presidential primaries that they are planning a statewide event to elevate the voice of Texas conservatives to the top of the campaign heap. They are accordingly energizing the grassroots in Huffman and elsewhere.

Greater Houston Tea Party members have formed Texas Gallop Inc., a tax-exempt 527 corporation that is planning the inaugural Texas Gallop Straw Poll to be held in the Jan. 7-21 window. Gallop, spelled with an “o,” connotes one of the event’s purposes. Tea Party members and other conservatives would have a running start out of the gate in the nomination process, if everything takes place according to plan.

Gallop’s chairman, Joe Pelati, recruited straw poll volunteers and donors as he briefed Tea Party backers July 28 at Cedar Landing Restaurant in Huffman. Texas Tea Party voters would listen to speeches from presidential candidates at the straw poll and would make a good choice, said Pelati, who also serves on the Houston Tea Party Society’s activism committee.

“Is Texas doing things right or what, compared to a lot of other states, like California, Illinois, New York?” Pelati said, pointing out also the primacy of Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Nevada and Florida. “Why do they have votes, choosing candidates to run for president, that Texans don’t get? It’s usually over by the time the primary season reaches Texas.”

The Florida Primary is tentatively scheduled for Jan. 31, and the Iowa Caucus would have to move from Feb. 6 in order to continue to be the first showdown for presidential candidates. Texas will not hold its presidential primary until March 6, as the schedule stands.

“Looking at that coming up in 2012, it’s going to be a really big presidential year,” Pelati said at the gathering of 10 dinner guests. “I’ve had enough. Start talking to your other good Tea Party members and promote this idea. Let’s get the voice of Texas out there. Let’s do a big event in January, before the Iowa Caucus. The population of the greater Houston area is more than Iowa’s. For Iowa to have such power ... Maybe we need something different; time for a change.”

Pelati also discussed the primary track records of Iowa and New Hampshire. The former picked George H.W. Bush over Ronald Reagan in 1980 and chose Bob Dole twice, he said. New Hampshire, Pelati said, chose John McCain twice in recent years.

Straw poll director and Kingwood Tea Party member Larry Lane praised New Hampshire, but he said that he did not want such a nice place to visit “determining my choice for the presidential nominee in 2012.”

Lane asked the guests: “You think it sounds goofy? Gallop?”

Then he explained the purpose of the galloping cowboy on the straw poll’s emblem.

“We’re going to pick a proper presidential nominee and some other high-level state candidates who share our values, who share our vision and share our philosophy,” Lane said, his volume rising to a rally level. “We’re going to put those suckers on horses. We’re going to slap them in the butt and give them a head start, not only to influence Texas but to influence the whole darned country.”

Lower taxes and a diminished role for government are among the party’s goals.

The straw poll would host appearances by candidates for president and for local, state and congressional offices, he said, adding that there would be other luminaries in the line-up of speakers. The event would feature training sessions and Tea Party networking opportunities, he said.

Technology may be used to link straw poll voters from locations across the state.

This is the planning and organizing phase, the completion of which sets the stage for venue selection and the invitations of candidates and other speakers.

Currently devoid of a deep-pocketed benefactor, the grassroots initiative requires grassroots volunteerism and donations, Pelati said. The size of the venue will depend on the availability of funds to pay for it. The turnout of candidates and the level of participation will be mutually beneficial. Details are posted online at www.texasgallopstrawpoll.com.

Who knows what influence Texas straw pollers might have? Voters in other states may consider the outcome, meeting participant Nancy Chapman said.

“We get the word out there, a lot of the states will look at Texas,” she said.